Australian Midlatitudes Rainfall

Brief description

Annual and seasonal rainfall data for selected locations and three study areas was produced to assist identifying statistically significant long-term trends between 1907 and 2018. The selected weather stations represent different climate and rainfall zones in each study area. The objective is to compare year-to-year variability in precipitation with any potential long-term trend and to understand if recent experience of a drying trend in parts of Australia are part of a longer-term trend.
Lineage: Station and regional data for seasonal and annual precipitation is calculated from monthly precipitation data. Summer precipitation is defined as the sum of monthly precipitation in December and January and February of the following year. For example, summer precipitation in 2019 relates to the summer 2019/20. Winter precipitation is defined as the sum of monthly precipitation in June, July and August. Regional data is calculated from first calculating annual and seasonal precipitation as described above for every raster grid cell in the study area and then averaging across the whole study area.

Selected weather stations and Bureau of Meteorology station IDs are: Broomehill (WA) -10525, Merredin (WA) - 10092, Mingenew (WA) - 08088, Bingara (NSW) - 54004, Cunnamulla (QLD) - 44026, Curlewis (Pine Cliff) (NSW) - 55045, Miles (QLD) - 42023, Narrabri (NSW) - 53026, Peak Hill (NSW) - 50031, Pittsworth (QLD) - 41082, Wallangra (QLD) - 54036, Clarence Town (NSW) - 61010, Murgon (QLD) - 40152, Yamba (NSW) - 58012